In a joint policy statement, AMWA, the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the National Association of Water Companies outlined actions necessary to protect drinking water supplies during oil and gas development activities, including hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). Recommendations in the joint statement, developed with input from AMWA’s Regulatory Committee, focus largely on leveraging existing federal authority under both the Safe Drinking Water Act and Clean Water Act to ensure all potential drinking water sources are protected against potential contamination. In addition to advocating for the utilization of existing federal statutes to protect drinking water supplies, the joint statement outlines several more specific, common sense principles related to site and well design and operation, monitoring, disclosure and financial responsibility.
AMWA also weighed in on EPA’s draft guidance document, “Permitting Guidance for Oil and Gas Hydraulic Fracturing Activities Using Diesel Fuels (Underground Injection Control Program Guidance #84)” which attempts to clarify EPA’s permitting requirements for fracking operations under its underground injection control (UIC) program. AMWA submitted joint comments with AWWA, Clean Water Action and National Resources Defense Council that emphasized the common concerns of our organizations in ensuring fracking operations don’t compromise drinking water resources. Areas addressed in the comments included a call for a more expansive definition of “diesel fuels”, eliminating the allowance of de minimisamounts of diesel in fracking fluids, enhanced monitoring requirements and the potential need for regulatory certainty via rulemaking under EPA’s UIC program.
Both the joint policy statement and joint comments on EPA’s guidance are available under “References” at www.amwa.net/cs/SWPwebcasts.